


Red Shirts on Tuesday (are forbidden for Everyone)

by Xythia



Series: Reality Bites [1]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Captain America - All Media Types, Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Consequences, Essays, Gen, Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Team, real life consequences
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-09
Updated: 2017-08-09
Packaged: 2018-12-13 05:51:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,909
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11753388
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Xythia/pseuds/Xythia
Summary: To borrow (and alter slightly to be more fair) from another fic: Actions have consequences (for EVERYONE) - not just Tony Stark. Be warned, this is a fictionalised rant that deals with my sour feelings about how a lot of people seem to forget the rules of our civilisation.





	Red Shirts on Tuesday (are forbidden for Everyone)

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: might bore some people^^

_"Bucky is innocent!"_

_"The best hands are our own."_

_Steven Grant Rogers_

 

The only thing that was remarkable about the man who entered the classroom was that he looked completely average. Face, body and suit were something most people who met him on the street would forget within five minutes.

 

The room wasn’t exceptional and matched the man in its generic glory. It featured a blackboard and typical classroom furniture. Even the view out of the windows was so unremarkable, no hint for the location could be gleaned. What wasn’t fitting the picture at all were the occupants. Colorfully clothed adults had been seated on the chairs- yes, it was unlikely that they had done so themselves voluntarily because the chairs looked like they had been made for 12 year old kids. The muscular fully grown men (one of them in half a robotic suit) and leggy women looked ridiculous. Only one skinny, obviously younger individual looked halfway comfortable.

 

The newcomer placed the file he had carried on the teacher’s desk, arranged the sheets of paper he took out in piles, added markers and adhesive tape and sighed. “You have been dosed with a paralysing agent which has been modified to your individual physical specifications. It will go ineffectual in two hours time and we will teleport you to where we found you 10 minutes before it wears off. Since you have been taken from your homes” he nodded to the not-robbot- “or your laboratory, we expect you to be safe for those vulnerable minutes but rest assured that we will nevertheless monitor your health to prevent any regrettable accidents.”

 

The man squared his shoulders and strode to the blackboard, pushing the outer board aside so everyone could read what had been written there.

 

‘Remedial Class: Laws & Accountability for Beginners’

 

“Some of you show a deeper understanding of the concepts of this lecture but my bosses want to make sure that none of you could claim ignorance or preferential treatment. Ignorance of the law isn’t an excuse by the way. I never thought that I would say this, but you have been put in detention.

 

“This is a lecture, not a discussion and the information I will present can be easily verified. I took the liberty of printing out the relevant links to the official governmental webpages.” He held up a sheet of paper, showed it to his ‘class’, snatched folded copies  and went from ‘student’ to ‘student’ and tucked the paper into the various costumes. He only hesitated and gulped visibly before he tucked one into a red-heads’ carefully displayed ample cleavage.

 

“Your puplic exclamations and speeches have raised red flags.”

 

“Let’s get down to basics, please note that this is a simplified version: The people” he pointedly stared at a blond man “ express their wishes and opinions by casting their votes in the hope that their representative will get majority support and stand in as their voice in the government. A government votes on laws which make up the rulebook for the people they govern. If you, as a citizen of a democratic country, disagree with a law, you have a few options to react. One, you can do some research and find out who supported the law and who would have the best chance to alter or abolish it, then wait for the next election and vote accordingly. Two: freedom of speech grants you the right to make your displeasure publicly known as long as you are nonviolent and don’t endanger your fellow citizens by encouraging them to riot. You might change enough citizen and representatives’ minds to have them discuss altering the law in earnest. Good for you. Three, you emigrate. And there’s one further option: you break the law, which makes you a criminal.

 

“Let’s put it into context with something that is a little silly but will hopefully help you understand.” The teacher took one prepared sheet and stuck it to the blackboard with spellotape.

 

“For whatever reason this federal law has been written and verified. ‘No citizen is allowed to wear a red shirt on tuesdays.’ Pretty silly, eh? Punishable by 20 years in prison. It has been widely announced and is a part of the federal body of law.

 

Let’s take a look what happens if someone breaks this law.

 

Breaking a law means the individual is now a criminal, I can’t stress that enough. Joe Average puts on a red shirt on tuesday, in his home with the curtains closed. The likelihood that he will be caught and prosecuted is very slim, but his actions are still against the law;

 

He puts on the shirt and goes outside, a lot of people roll their eyes and quickly pretend they didn’t see him. They risk getting into trouble themselves. Someone calls the police. The police arrives and takes Joe Average into custody. Is it fair? No. Is the rule stupid? Yes. Does it alter the fact that he broke a law? **No.**

 

The justice system isn’t perfect but just like democracy, nobody has invented a better one yet.

 

Now, Joe Average calls his lawyer, the police a prosecutor. Again, simplified. Joe has the right to have his case defended and the right to be judged - and here it comes - **by the people**. If it is a major offense his guilt or innocence will be decided by a group of fellow citizens of good standing and reasonable neutrality.

 

Both sides can have members of the jury dismissed. Someone who works for a company that produces red shirts, for example, can be dismissed for being prejudiced. Or someone who is a known member of a red shirt abolishment group. Anyone who has a personal interest in the outcome can and should be disqualified.

 

The Judge’s job is to keep order and, after a general guilty/non-guilty verdict has been proclaimed, to decide on the details and severity of the punishment.  

 

The jury full of Average Joes and Janes listens to the arguments of both prosecution and defense, look at the evidence, listens to the testimonies of witnesses and professionals and then, without being influenced by outside factors and in seclusion, comes to a verdict. Guilty or Innocent. If Joe Average is found to be innocent of all charges he is free to go and not a criminal anymore.

 

Both Defense and Prosecution have the options to call for a mistrial or retrial if they have reasonable arguments.”

 

The teacher has added further sheets to the blackboard with words accompanying his lecture. Arrows and exclamation marks added to the mess on black surface.

 

"Let’s say Joe Average did it for shit and giggles, just to break the law. No outside influence, no excuses and no regret. He is found guilty of the crime and sentenced to 20 years of prison.

 

Or, it might have been like this: Joe Average’s lawyer can prove that someone else blackmailed his client into wearing the shirt by threatening the life of his son. He is still found guilty because he could have sought help, but he get’s away with a milder sentence.

 

Lastly, Joe Average convinces the jury that he had been nearly ready to leave home and go to work, had been in front of his wardrobe with only his upper body bare when someone crashed their car in front of his house and he could hear pained cries and see flames. He snatched a shirt without looking and a jacket so the flames wouldn’t touch his bare body, hurried outside and did his best to save the people in the car. His lack of shoes and  a lot of witnesses give weight to his account and he is absolved of the crime as long as he doesn’t repeat the offense.

 

Put into personal context-”

 

He sighed deeply and pinned a scroll at the top of the board, it opened and after it was fully extended it reached the bottom of the board. Every inch was covered with lines and names. Laws (with references) and names of the culprit who was suspected to have broken it as addendums behind. Vigilantism hat it’s own big block, only dwarfed by ‘Illegal armed entry of a foreign country’, adding and abetting a murderer, theft, destruction of property- the list was huge.

 

“Please note that none of the points have anything to do with the Sokovia Accords. **If anyone else did what you have done, they would face repercussions as well. Your enhanced/superhero status doesn't mean you are not accountable**.” A steely eyed glare was sent to a certain member of his captive audience. “Some have better lawyers, I admit.” The unnamed man’s smile showed some teeth but no warmth. “Aren’t we all supposed to be equal in front of the law?”

 

“Ah, yes, Tony Stark. Someone who endangered a minor and had him leave the country without the consent of their guardian among other things, but let’s concentrate on that, it seems to be debated widely. Certainly a serious crime. His no doubt first class defense would argue that Spiderman is one of the strongest, if not the strongest superhero currently active and his talents were needed to prevent more deaths and destruction. Specialists would be called to give their estimates of how much his acts helped/hindered. Psychologists would give their opinion about his maturity, his aunt would be called and asked for her views. It all comes down to the question if including him was without alternative measures to the same profit.

 

“James Buchanan Barnes killed Howard and Maria Stark, we have it on tape, that fact is non-debatable. He wore that red shirt on a tuesday! His defense would point out that he was brainwashed. Specialists would be called to answer questions like: should he have been able to break that conditioning (sooner)? What kind of lingering damage is to be expected and therefore how much can he be held accountable for anything that happened after him breaking away? Is he able to reason his actions or is he easily influenced now due to trained responses to pressure?

 

Steven Rogers killed and injured members of Law Enforcement and civilians alike in his quest to keep James Barnes free. A jury would have to say if the life of one single person under suspicion of mass murder is worth that kind of destruction.

 

No single person has the right to proclaim someone innocent and insist that the world follows his lead, that’s that, end of the line.”

 

.................................................

List: Entering a country without permission (all of them at one point or another)

armed entry of a foreign country without permission (all of them),

destruction of public property (all of them, Team Iron Man in defense),

injuring and killing members of Law Enforcement and civilians (Team Captain America)

breaking accords and treaties, (sokovia accords: Romanova, Siberia: Stark)

failure to render assistance in an emergency with possible deathly consequenses (Barnes and Rogers, Siberia), Edit: Getit199 pointed out that it isn't a crime in the US. It is in many countries in Europe thus I leeave it

endangerment of a minor (Stark),

kidnapping of a minor (Stark),

theft (Team Caprtain America, various ground and air vehicles),

acts of terrorism (Team Captain Ameica)

murder or attempted murder (Team Captain America, Barnes, Stark (Siberia))

aiding and abetting a murderer (Team Captain America)

treason (Team Captain America)

missuse of government property/private property (Wilson & Rogers searching for Barnes)

criminally negligent homicide (Team Captain America)

**Author's Note:**

> Personal Note: I’m not a lawyer, nor am I from the USA but this is how I understand justice works in a civilised western country. I’m frankly baffled whenever I read about why people think that Rogers & Stark are outside the law and Judge, Jury and Executioner. Outside defending their own lifes in a fight they didn't start they can't be  
> For me, apart from the length of the list of offenses, what sets Stark apart (and makes him a hero) is that he is ready to be held accountable for his infractions and showed so in the past, regarding his mistakes. Rogers and his ‘best Hands’- not at all. In my eyes he (and his contempt for laws) makes Rogers the ultimate anarchist and him wearing a flag, any flag!, as a costume is an affront to any truly law-abiding patriotic person.
> 
> Edit: I posted the version without spellcheck, no reason why but most mistakes are corrected now.


End file.
